1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to reclining chairs, and more particularly to reclining chairs which include actuator assemblies which, when operated by the user of the chair, will activate the mechanical support mechanisms in the chairs so as to reposition them from an upright to a reclined positioning.
2. The Prior Art
Chairs which are constructed such that the backrest part thereof can be tilted with respect to the seat part by one or more hand-operated levers connected to support mechanisms inside the chair are well known. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 255,908, 972,334 and 1,924,329. Also well known are the more modern reclining chairs which are constructed with complicated mechanical support mechanisms operable such that all the major parts of the chair, i.e., the backrest, seat, footrest and chair sides, will be repositionable with respect to each other and with respect to a chair base therebelow, thereby changing the positioning of the chair from an upright positioning to a reclined positioning and vice versa, based on the wishes of the user. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,185,870, 4,226,468 and 4,352,523. Some of these modern reclining chairs also include actuator assemblies which are connected to the carriage mechanisms in the chairs and are operable by the user of the chair to activate the actuator assemblies so as to automatically reposition the chair from an upright positioning to a reclined positioning. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,352,523. However, these known actuator assemblies have been discovered to be difficult to operate, complicated in construction, subject to quick failure and/or expensive to manufacture.
Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide an actuator assembly for a modern reclining chair (i.e., a chair of the type which includes a carriage mechanism which is capable of simultaneously moving the backrest, seat, footrest and chair sides with respect to each other and the chair base) which can be easily operated by the person sitting in the chair, which will be simple in construction, which will be durable in use, and inexpensive to manufacture and install. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a reclining chair which includes such an actuator assembly.